UD law professor sang for Sha Na Na at Woodstock

From Sha Na Na lead singer to law school professor, Dennis Greene puts historic festival into perspective

Dennis Greene, who has been a law professor at the University of Dayton for six years, was a member of the musical group Sha Na Na. The group performed at Woodstock. On the wall are pictures of former deans of the law school (left) Richard Braun and Norman George.

Ron Alvey/Staff Dennis Greene, who has been a law professor at the University of Dayton for six years, was a member of the musical group Sha Na Na. The group performed at Woodstock. On the wall are pictures of former deans of the law school (left) Richard Braun and Norman George.

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By Dave Larsen, Staff Writer Updated 9:37 AM Friday, August 14, 2009

DAYTON — Dennis Greene’s law students at the University of Dayton discovered his rock star past via YouTube.

The students used their laptop computers in class to watch online clips of Greene performing in 1969 at the Woodstock music festival and on a 1970s television variety series as a member of the ’50s rock revival group Sha Na Na.

“The revolutionary nature of that piece of digital technology has made Sha Na Na a phenomenon that I have to respond to in a way that I haven’t had to think about for 25 years,” Greene said.

The New York City native was a founding member of Sha Na Na, singing lead and doing the group’s choreography from 1969 to 1984. After leaving the group, he earned a master’s degree from Harvard University, a law degree from Yale University and was vice president of production and features at Columbia Pictures.

Greene, 60, joined the UD faculty in 2001 and has taught constitutional, entertainment, race and American law since 2004.

Sha Na Na had only been together a few months when they were tapped to play Woodstock, the legendary rock festival held Aug. 15-18, 1969.

At the time, the group was playing a New York club frequented by Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin. “The buzz was very high on us and we got the offer to play Woodstock from Mike Lang, who was one of the promoters,” he said.

Sha Na Na performed before Hendrix, the festival’s final act. The group had been scheduled to play at 9:30 p.m. Sunday, but went on at 5:30 a.m. Monday because of rain delays and unscheduled performers.

“It went extremely well,” he said. “We did encores and the whole thing.”

Greene spent some of his 18 hours there walking the muddy field among 500,000 concert-goers.

“You really had this incredible feeling that this could never happen again because of the fact that it was so physically challenging and yet the people’s attitude was so wonderful and giving,” he said. “It just slapped you in the face that this was a really unique, amazing moment.”

Staging a three-day concert of Woodstock’s caliber would be difficult in today’s economy, Greene said. “In today’s world the prices that group’s charge, the price of tickets, all of that is so completely off the charts that it would be difficult to capitalize that,” he said.

It’s also unlikely that today’s stars would stand around for 18 hours in the mud waiting to perform.

Greene plans to spend the festival’s 40th anniversary working on a book that he is writing about Woodstock. “Not just Woodstock, but how it sort of metaphors life today in terms of what lessons we have learned from it,” he said. “My working title has been, ‘10 Lessons From Woodstock for the Age of Obama.’ ”

Woodstock schedule of events

Aug. 15: Richie Havens, Sweetwater, The Incredible String Band, Bert Sommer, Tim Hardin, Ravi Shankar, Melanie, Arlo Guthrie, Joan Baez

Aug. 16: Quill, Keef Hartley Band, Country Joe McDonald, John Sebastian, Santana, Canned Heat, Mountain, Grateful Dead, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Janis Joplin, Sly & the Family Stone, The Who, Jefferson Airplane

Aug. 17-18: Joe Cocker, Country Joe and the Fish, Ten Years After, The Band, Blood, Sweat & Tears, Johnny Winter, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Paul Butterfield Blues Band, Sha Na Na, Jimi Hendrix

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